More than 50 people are missing, with police investigating the cause of the fire.
Published on January 19, 2026
Death toll from A fire broke out at a shopping mall in Karachi The search continues for more than 50 missing people, which have risen to at least 14 over the weekend, according to Pakistani officials.
South Deputy Inspector General of Police, Syed Asad Raza, told Dawn newspaper on Monday that eight more bodies had been recovered by rescue workers since Sunday evening, taking the death toll from six to 14.
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Police surgeon Dr Summayya Syed told the daily that a total of five bodies were brought to the local hospital.
Police and rescue teams are using mobile phone data to trace the 54 to 59 missing people and have contacted families to gather details.
Karachi is the largest city in Pakistan and the capital of South Sindh province.
Sindh Governor Kamran Tesori, who visited the site on Monday, told local media that “more than 70” people were missing.
“The reports of more than 70 missing persons are extremely alarming and a great tragedy,” Tesori said, adding that the incident had now turned into a “national tragedy”.
The fire broke out at the busy Gul Plaza shopping mall late on Saturday. Firefighters managed to bring the blaze under control after about 36 hours, allowing rescue teams to enter the building to evacuate those trapped inside.
However, officials warned that the building is now extremely unstable and could collapse at any moment.
Later on Monday, Abid Jalal, Chief Executive Officer of Rescue, told Dawn that firefighting efforts had resumed, as flames spread over a section of the mall.
Officials initially suspected the fire to have been caused by an electrical short circuit in a shop, but later said police investigations were ongoing and the cause was yet to be ascertained.
Shopkeepers and residents told local media that early efforts to put out the fire were hampered by a delayed response and lack of water and equipment, angering traders who say decades of livelihood have been destroyed.
Karachi has a history of deadly fires, often blamed on poor safety standards and illegal construction. In November 2023, a fire at a shopping mall in the city killed 10 people and injured 22 others.
In 2012, a fire in a garment factory in Karachi killed 260 people.